"Zhong Kui." Jing Hongchen called out to Zhong Kui.
"I hope you can meet my grandson and granddaughter. You are all outstanding geniuses. Although my grandson and granddaughter may not be as exceptional as you, they are still rare talents of the Sun Moon Empire. Get to know each other well—it will benefit all of you in the future."
At this moment, Jing Hongchen hoped Zhong Kui could build a good relationship with his grandson and granddaughter. This big shot from Virtue Hall described Zhong Kui as a genius.
Zhong Kui did not know what to say. In his eyes, he was not a genius at all; he had cheated with the system. So he had always felt that he was not a genius, but he could not say that aloud.
Zhong Kui clearly knew that his talent had been obtained through cheating. He was someone who cheated, someone with a system cheat, not a genuine genius. Thus, deep down, he felt unqualified to compare himself with geniuses like Xiao Hongchen and Meng Hongchen.
Sometimes, he truly wanted to tell the truth—that he had gained all this through cheating. He wanted to be honest, but he could not say it.
"Meeting your grandson and granddaughter is no problem, of course. But Hall Master, the reason you arranged this is because you want me to join them in the Soul Fighting Tournament, right? After all, the tournament will begin soon. I heard it will be held in the Star Luo Empire, so we should make preparations, shouldn't we?"
"That is indeed the case. The Soul Fighting Tournament will be held in the Star Luo Empire. This tournament's turn has come to the Star Luo Empire, but the Star Luo Empire is, after all, one of the Douluo Three Kingdoms, and Shrek is there as well."
"But honestly, I am worried about you. You are such an outstanding genius. If Shrek and the people of the Douluo Three Kingdoms discover you, how could they possibly tolerate your existence for the sake of their future? Shrek may claim to be the continent's number one sacred ground, a great academy that once taught gods."
"But no one knows how much truth there is in that. Whether they truly taught any gods, I do not know. Our Sun Moon Empire has also had rumors of a god of Soul Tools. To be honest, I am truly worried about you. Even if you entered the Soul Fighting Tournament completely unprepared, I believe that with your strength, you should still be able to win the championship."
"You might even break Shrek's monopoly over the Soul Master Tournament championship. But if that happens, the countdown to your death will have begun."
Jing Hongchen then took out some documents. They recorded outstanding young talents from the Sun Moon Empire in previous years who had been killed during the Soul Master Tournament, also known as the Soul Fighting Tournament, by people from Shrek, even Shrek Elder Xuan Zi, and other contestants from the Douluo Three Kingdoms.
"The people of the Douluo Three Kingdoms are not fools. How could they allow outstanding talents to continue living in the Sun Moon Empire and create benefits for the Sun Moon Empire?"
"When war breaks out, how will we deal with the people of the Douluo Three Kingdoms? Shrek is the same."
"If your exceptional talent is displayed, you will only be targeted by the Douluo Three Kingdoms and Shrek. Especially that Xuan Zi—his personality is extremely cold-blooded and disgusting."
"Why do I say that? Because on the surface, Xuan Zi is a reasonable, righteous, outstanding senior of Shrek. But in essence, he is merely someone willing to do anything for Shrek's glory."
"For this so-called Shrek glory, he has killed many Sun Moon Empire contestants. Those contestants had injured Shrek's contestants during battles, and then he flew into a rage, declaring that the Sun Moon Empire contestants had intentionally harmed others. He said they had to be punished, then killed them."
"Some Sun Moon Empire talents were not killed by Xuan Zi, but they were still killed by people from the Douluo Three Kingdoms during battles. The referees at the time were their people, so no one could do anything about them. Our Sun Moon Empire could not obtain justice either."
These were all cases from previous years, when the tournament was held in the Douluo Three Kingdoms. The organizers watched these students get brutally killed yet chose not to punish anyone, because Xuan Zi was from Shrek, and what he did bought breathing room for the Douluo Three Kingdoms.
There were many cases of Sun Moon Empire contestants being killed by contestants from other countries.
"So no matter what, you must be careful. When the Soul Master Tournament begins, I will personally go there to protect your safety as well. I will bring Soul Tools. If those Douluo Three Kingdoms dare to pull anything, then we will perish together with them to ensure your safety."
"But you must also be careful. Do not give Xuan Zi and the others any leverage, or the consequences will be severe."
After hearing the Virtue Hall Master say this, Zhong Kui understood why Jing Hongchen had reminded him to be so cautious. It turned out Shrek had a history of acting unreasonably.
Moreover, because previous tournaments had been held in the Douluo Three Kingdoms, they had killed so many outstanding Sun Moon Empire contestants. That was ruthless enough. They were truly unreasonable—no wonder!
"I understand." With the system's help and its cheats, Zhong Kui naturally was not afraid of those Title Douluo. After all, he possessed so many Dou Techniques and could fight a Title Douluo for a while.
But the competition team needed protection as well. Otherwise, the trouble would be immense.
"In any case, trouble will come when the Soul Fighting Tournament arrives, so we must prepare. Go meet my grandson and granddaughter first. Have a good talk, so you can be ready when you participate in the Soul Fighting Tournament. Be wary of the other side."
"The people of Shrek and the Douluo Three Kingdoms may try all sorts of tricks."
"Understood."
In the end, Zhong Kui and Jing Hongchen arrived at the classroom. Everyone was currently in class, and Xiao Hongchen and Meng Hongchen were among them, studying Soul Tool technology. When they saw their grandfather arrive, both happily stood up, but there was someone beside him whom they could not figure out.
"Grandfather, who is this person? Why is he with you?" Meng Hongchen asked at this moment.
"This is the new genius of our Sun Moon Empire Royal Soul Guidance Academy. His name is Zhong Kui."
"You are that fourteen-year-old level sixty-two Soul Emperor?! You look rather like an adult."
"I thought you would be a handsome young man with a youthful appearance. Turns out you are a boy who looks rather mature and seasoned. But you are only sixteen—why do you look like this..."
"Indeed, Zhong Kui cannot be called old-looking, but he truly does not look like someone his age. It must have been caused by excessive cultivation, right?"
Before you continue